Textile designer to printing textile technician
A textile designer already meets 53% of what the printing textile technician role asks for. The move turns on 4 required skills not yet in the profile.
41.7/ 100
1 How much of what a printing textile technician is expected to do is already part of a textile designer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the printing textile technician role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A printing textile technician role treats 5 of its required skills as things a textile designer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- decorate textile articles
- design yarns
- dyeing technology
- textile chemistry
- textile printing technology
What stands in the way is 4 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 8 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A printing textile technician role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a textile designer background worth leading with.
- already held design yarns communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held design woven fabrics communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held develop textile colouring recipes handling and moving
- already held draw sketches to develop textile articles communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held textile chemistry engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held textile printing technology engineering, manufacturing and construction
All 8 carried skills, including the 5 the printing textile technician role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 8 missing skills fall into 4 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn conduct textile testing operations required
- still to learn evaluate textile characteristics required
- still to learn maintain work standards required
- still to learn control textile process required
- optional, not held textile finishing technology optional
- optional, not held textile technologies optional
- optional, not held tend textile printing machines optional
- optional, not held prepare equipment for textile printing optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a printing textile technician role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 conduct textile testing operations practise this
- 02 control textile process practise this
- 03 evaluate textile characteristics practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 8 skills that carry over
- already held decorate textile articles skill
- already held design yarns skill
- already held dyeing technology knowledge
- already held textile chemistry knowledge
- already held textile printing technology knowledge
- already held design woven fabrics skill
- already held develop textile colouring recipes skill
- already held draw sketches to develop textile articles skill
4 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held tend textile printing machines optional
- optional, not held textile finishing technology optional
- optional, not held prepare equipment for textile printing optional
- optional, not held textile technologies optional
19 held skills the printing textile technician role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role challenging issues in the textile industry knowledge
- not needed by the target role create mood boards skill
- not needed by the target role design management knowledge
- not needed by the target role design warp knit fabrics skill
- not needed by the target role design weft knitted fabrics skill
- not needed by the target role distinguish accessories skill
- not needed by the target role distinguish fabrics skill
- not needed by the target role draw sketches to develop textile articles using softwares skill
- not needed by the target role gather reference materials for artwork skill
- not needed by the target role keep up to date on costume design skill
- not needed by the target role knitting machine technology knowledge
- not needed by the target role measure yarn count skill
- not needed by the target role nonwoven machine technology knowledge
- not needed by the target role portfolio management in textile manufacturing knowledge
- not needed by the target role properties of textile materials knowledge
- not needed by the target role seek innovation in current practices skill
- not needed by the target role textile marketing techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role use textile technique for hand-made products skill
- not needed by the target role use warp knitting technologies skill
2 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- optional, not held textile finishing technology optional
- optional, not held textile technologies optional
Common questions about this move
Can a textile designer become a printing textile technician?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A textile designer already covers 53% of what a printing textile technician is expected to do: 8 skills carry over, 5 of which the printing textile technician role treats as required.
What skills does a textile designer need to become a printing textile technician?
4 required skills are missing, plus 4 optional ones. They fall into 4 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is conduct textile testing operations.
How hard is the move from textile designer to printing textile technician?
Its learning distance is 41.7 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.